A Whole New Ballgame
by WhoNeedsReality
Summary: Jess is coming back to London for Christmas break, and she and Joe are going to be together again after 4 months. It won't be a smooth reunion however, because there's still the matter of tackling Jess's parents... Can their relationship survive the Punjabis? And just how madcap will things get with the Bhamras involved? Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

Jess wasn't sure whether to be nervous or excited. It was hard not to be excited with Jules practically bouncing off the seat next to her.

"But how ace was the match against LA?" she was saying, "that double header was awesome!"

Jess grinned back at her. "That was the best bend I ever did!"

"God I'm so excited to see mum and dad again!" Jules continued.

"I know- I can't wait to see my lot either."

Jules smirked at her. "I bet you can't! 'Specially since a certain Irish lad falls under 'your lot.'"

Jess's heart flipped a somersault. Joe. For a while, it didn't really seem like they'd been apart. She knew he watched her games on TV, and he made it a habit to call her up after each one, no matter the time difference, and go through a detailed play-by-play review. He phoned other times as well, of course. A lot, in fact. She would have called him too, except despite her scholarship, she was still an income-less student with no real way to pay back phone bills. She emailed him though, all the time. Jules always poked fun at her for her penchant for suddenly jumping up to shoot off an email to Joe at the wee hours of the morning.

"You're a right regular Romeo and Juliet, you two," Jules would say, "let me know when the secret wedding and double suicide roll round, I don't want to miss it!"

Jess had laughed at the time, but the Romeo and Juliet analogy was hitting a little too close to home now. Nobody back home had a clue about her and Joe, nobody except Tony. But Jess remembered the last time she'd seen Joe. She'd left an implicit promise that they'd come clean to her parents when she came back for Christmas, and now... She felt a bit sick. She thanked her lucky stars every day that he had come to the airport that day. She knew in the back of her mind that her way would have been easier- to never let anything happen, to abstain from anything she's have had to confess to her parents at all. But she didn't- couldn't- regret Joe. He felt like a part of her. She had never admitted to anyone, never even let herself think it except in the late, quiet nights in her head, but she thought... She felt like maybe, possibly, he could be the one. Well. She was certain. But she was terrified to admit it.

Jules seemed to sense Jess's discomfort. "Oh relax," she said, "you two made the whole long-distance thing work didn't you? Your parents'll be easy after that! Now stop moping and focus on the happy part!"

In spite of everything, Jess smiled to herself. She was going to see him again. At times, it felt like he'd been in Santa Clara with her, but others- just after hanging up the phone, a second after hitting the send button, running off after a match and realising he wouldn't be there to hug, even just and random moments walking down a hall or rolling over in bed- she'd be hit by the distance between them like it was a car. She ached for him that at times she got quite miserable. Jules called those moods her "WithJoeAl" symptoms.

The shuddering of the plane as its descent into London Heathrow began snapped Jess out of her reverie. Jules grabbed her hand, and the excitement took over. She was home.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot.**

Joe was restless. He really, really wanted to be at Heathrow right now, but, as Tony had pointed out, turning up there might not be the best idea considering it was the workplace of both Jess's dad and her sister. So instead, he was here trying to work off his restlessness by jogging round the pitch. He knew his restlessness was silly- they'd gone four months hadn't they? But God he missed her. He knew they'd been a couple for literally two minutes before she left, but he didn't just miss his girlfriend, he missed Jess. Ironically, he felt like they were losing freedom now she was coming home. There wouldn't be any more daily phone calls, not now they ran the risk of her parents finding out. But all things going to plan, they would be finding out soon anyway. He and Jess hadn't really discussed it, but he sensed that the words "we'll tackle my parents then" hung over her as they did over him. He wanted to come clean to the Bhamras- he didn't want to be some murky secret which made Jess miserable because she kept it from her family. But a part of him was scared. Scared that if her family got angry, Jess would... He shook himself. Now was not the time. Anyway, the Bhamras might be okay with it- they'd come round before hadn't they? Besides, a tentative friendship had sprung up between him and the Bhamras- Jess's mother didn't do things by half, and when she relinquished Jess to America, she had enlisted Joe to help explain "this strange gora game" to her and her husband. She had also fed him copious amounts of aloo gobi. As Mr. Bhamra explained to him, Joe was, as far as they were concerned, Jess's guru, and gurus deserved respect. Joe had almost choked on that. He somehow doubted that the same courtesy would be extended to boyfriends. Contrary to Jess's belief, however, it wasn't her mother he found most intimidating but her father. A father with such a quiet anger, and the obvious love he had for his children, was alien to Joe, and Mr. Bhamra could be slightly awe-striking. But right now, nothing was irking him more than the fact that Jess wasn't here. He stopped jogging, panting heavily as he grabbe d his phone from a bench. There was a new text from Jess's mate Tony- who had been something of a godsend for Joe in giving him debriefs on Indian culture. Like actually explaining what a "gora" was. The text read: "she's landed." Joe put the phone down and kept running, only now, a really stupid grin was plastered across his face.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except the plot.**

Had she not already lived through Pinky's wedding, Jess might have thought she'd never seen so many flowers. Mr. and Mrs. Paxton were festooned with bouquets and balloons for Jules and her, and her own mum and dad insisted on garlanding them both. The car ride home was one of incessant chatter, the air thick with a mixture of Punjabi and English. Her father questioned her about her studies, her mother complained that the Americans were starving her. Tony- who was on holiday from studying dentistry at Manchester Uni- and his mum came over, as did Pinky and Teetu. Jess was force fed more "ghar ka khana" than she would have believed it was possible to eat, and finally, the Bhamras (and Tony's family) collapsed on the sofas. "So, Jessie puttar," asked her father, "do you have to practice even on holiday?"

Jess nodded. "I have to stay in shape and at least maintain my skill level."

"Perhaps you should speak with Joe," suggested her father, as Jess almost choked on her chai, "and see if you can practice at the club."

"Yeah, she can do that," interjected Tony to distract everyone from a still-spluttering Jess, "but we gotta go!"

"Go where?" asked Jess, echoed by everyone.

Tony beamed. "Your old mates want to meet you."

And, deaf to the protests of their parents, he steered her to the car and drove off.

"Tony, what are you playing at?" demanded Jess as he all but lobbed her into his car.

He grinned at her. "You'll thank me later."

"Doubt it," she muttered, "I'm knackered."

"Trust me," Tony replied. "Anyway, I'm glad I finally got you alone! How've you been?"

Jess settled back into the car seat. "Ah, Tony, it's amazing! It's all proper professional matches, and there always camera crews and everything."

Tony nodded. "I know- we all watch all your matches. Even Aunty-ji." He paused, breaking out another grin. "You know she even made your gora come over and explain what was going on? She almost had a heart attack when she saw the tackling."

Jess groaned, laughing. "Poor Joe- he's terrified of her, though he won't admit it."

Tony glanced at her. "D'you miss him?"

She was grateful that her skin didn't show blushing easily. "'Course."

Tony nodded sagely. "D'y know when you're going to see him?"

Jess swore he could hear her heart thudding. "No," she swallowed, "it's weird, y'know, we haven't seen each other since... Well since we kissed for the first time, and I don't want it to be messed up because I spend the whole time worrying about my parents..."

"I thought so," beamed Tony, "which is why we're here!"

Jess's head snapped up. She hadn't noticed where they were going, but now she saw they were unmistakably at Hounslow Stadium, her old training ground. Her pulse quickened.

"Tony what are we doing here?"

He didn't answer until they had both clambered out of the car. "It's your welcome home present from me, innit? See now you get your gora fella to yourself, and since you had no idea what was going on, you don't have to feel guilty about your parents."

She hugged him hard. "Thanks Tony, you're a total ledge!"

He squeezed her shoulders affectionately. "I know- now go on, Joe's waiting. Call me when you need a lift home, yeah?"

She hugged him again. He sat back in the car, but then stuck his head back out.

"Oi Jess!"

She turned around. "Yeah?"

"He's still well fit, by the way!"

Jess jogged towards the entrance of the stadium, pretending that the remark hadn't flustered her.


End file.
